I’m a big fan of getting creative with BDSM play. Rope is great, and impact is fine, but what I love most is power exchange, and putting some thought and preparation into creating a great scene can go a long way towards heightening that dynamic.
In this article I’m going to describe one of my favorite scenarios – The Interrogation. It borrows from the genre of captured spy, or dirty cop, and it’s great not only to reinforce the dominance and submission of the participants, but also actually helps in revealing a lot about each other (well, about the sub anyway). Because of that, I generally incorporate this into a relatively early play session with a new play partner. Probably not the very first time, because it helps if a level of trust has already been established, but perhaps the second or third time. Having said that, it’s a classic that can still be fun even if you’ve been playing with them for years.
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Important – this scene is for people who already have an established BDSM relationship with their partner, and have already negotiated limits and safewords between them. The scene as described includes several different BDSM aspects, which should each have been discussed and agreed upon between the Dom and sub prior to playing. If any aspect is a problem for either person, you can of course modify and use alternative techniques instead.
What you’ll need:
- Sturdy chair – I prefer one without arms so that the sub’s legs are not prevented from opening. I like simple wooden ones rather than comfortable modern ones, for added effect.
- Wrist restraints – you could use rope if you want, but for this scene I prefer the convenience of leather cuffs. Ideally lockable like these ones.
- Ankle restraints.
- Connectors – something to attach the wrist cuffs together, and a lead or strap to connect the ankle cuffs to the back of the chair
- Long leather strap – highly recommended, to secure the torso to the back of the chair. Prevents wriggling around.
- Spotlights x 2
- Nice torture toy – something painful but not too horrible. E.g. a Neon Wand, or TENS unit on a low setting
- Mean torture toy – something a bit more serious. E.g. a Ta-zapper, or TENS on a higher setting
- Pleasure toy (optional) – e.g. Hitachi or Fleshlight
I put a lot of stock in the ambience of a scene. So you don’t want to just casually invite your submissive to sit in the chair for a spot of interrogation. Instead, build up to it. Perhaps have them waiting in bondage for a little while beforehand, in the dark or with a blindfold on. Then (borrowing some dramatic effect from a spy thriller), suddenly and loudly grab them and manhandle them to the chair. Sit your sub down, and get him or her secured. Start with the wrists behind the back (whether they are behind or in front of the chair back will depend on the chair and your sub’s comfort level, and whether you care about that). Then do the ankles – you’ll want to get the legs spread as wide and far back as you can and then secure the ankle restraints to the chair leg. Finally, put the leather strap in place to secure the torso to the chair back – important to prevent too much wriggling around. Now, I prefer subs to not be wearing any clothes for this scene, so if they aren’t already there this could be a great opportunity to cut the clothes off, which can be a real thrill unto itself for some submissives (obviously, only if this has been negotiated and they aren’t overly attached to whatever they are wearing).
Make sure the chair is secure and can’t fall backwards! Depending on what you do, the person tied to your chair may jump around a bit – the last thing you want is them falling backwards and being unable to cushion their fall.
Ideally the setting should be dark, which is perfect for now switching on your spotlights and directing them at the submissive. This creates a powerful effect of the person feeling like they are under scrutiny, while obscuring you as the questioner. Be aware of the power of the spotlight and exactly where you are pointing it – you don’t want to cause any permanent vision issues (like with all BDSM activities, I recommend testing on yourself before using on another person).
Now that the scene is set, you can begin the interrogation. Tell the person you are going to ask them some questions. Take an authoritative tone. Let them know you want them to answer you quickly, and truthfully.
I generally have two toys for this part. One mild torture toy like a violet wand set to a relatively gentle level. And one less forgiving toy like a Ta-zapper or simply a higher setting of the wand. You’ll notice the electrical play theme here, which I find accompanies the theme quite well, but you can of course substitute whatever you like for these – impact, clamps etc (electrical play can be dangerous – don’t do it without learning about how to do it safely first).
Explain to your sub that you’ll be using the violet wand as you ask them questions, and that it had better not distract them from answering you. And let them know that if you think they are lying about anything, or answering too slowly, or you otherwise don’t like their answer, then you’ll be using the mean toy on them. At which point you might like to demonstrate once on them for effect.
Now that the tone is set and they are likely in a cooperative frame of mind, you can begin questioning. Start with easy questions:
“What’s your name?”
“How old are you?”
“Where are you from?”
This will get them into the habit of answering you immediately and truthfully. Write down the answers. Even if you already know the answers, it’s part of the ambience and the role. Now, move onto more personal and embarrassing questions:
“How much do you weigh?”
“How many people have you fucked?”
“What sex toys do you own?”
This will help open the person up to you, and move them into a special kind of submissive mindset. Be mindful of any topics that are limits or triggers (which you should already know if you previously done a proper play negotiation). But other than that, aim to keep establishing your position of authority and make them open up and bare all to you.
“Have you ever done any drugs?”
“When was the last time you masturbated?”
“Tell me in detail about a fantasy you think about while masturbating”.
All the while throughout the questioning, you should be teasing them with your violet wand (or other toy of choice). It should add a pleasant level of difficulty as they try to answer your questions. And don’t forget to punish them with the mean toy if they take their time, or don’t provide enough detail, or even if the answer is true but you disapprove, or even pretend to disapprove on moral grounds (e.g. “have you ever cheated on a lover”)
You may decide to press for more details and ask different questions depending on your sub’s answers. In this way, it can be quite bonding as you learn things about them you might not have otherwise. For the sub, I am told it can actually feel quite liberating and exhilarating being made to reveal intimate details – like kinky therapy, perhaps.
And of course, you can file away the info you learn about their fantasies for use in future play scenes.
Once you are done with the questioning, if they have been good then you might choose to use your pleasure toy to get them off – they’ll no doubt be hot and ready for it. But that’s almost a clichéd finish now, so I’ll leave that up to you!
Stay tuned for more scene ideas in future editions.
Have you ever done an interrogation scene, either as the top or the bottom? Tell me about your experiences and any comments you’d like to add below!
Writer, photographer, hedonist, Dom. After years of at-home BDSM, Dexx finally embraced the kink community and met many fantastic fellow kinksters in the scene. Along the way, it occurred to him that it would be just super if there was a magazine-style web site which catered to people interested in BDSM, and he recruited some of his friends to help create it. Find him here.
